Calf-weaner.



No. 729,352. PATENTED MAY 26, 1903.

- A. ,T. 'KEEGH.

GALE 'WEApIBR. .APPLIUATION FILED JULY 3. 1902.

Snoenloz UNITED STATES Patented May 26, 1903.

ARCHIE T. KEEoI-I, or DODGECITY, KANSAS.

-CALF-WEAN SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 729,352, dated May 26, 1903. Application filed July 3, 1902. Serial No. 114,240. (No model.)

To on whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, ARCHIE T. KEECH, a

citizen of the United States, residing at Dodge City, in the county of Ford and State of Kansas, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Oalf-Weaners; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to improvements in calf-weaners.

The object of the inventionis to provide a calf-weaning device which shall be light in weight, simple, cheap, and durable in construction, and readily adjustable, so as to be supported from the nose of the animal, and, further, to construct the device in such man ner as to enable it to be made from a blank cut out or stamped up from sheet metal, the complete device being so reinforced as to pre vent it from buckling or bending at the center while in use and injuring the nostrils of the calf.

With the above and other objects in view,

which will readily appear as the nature of the invention is better understood, said invention consists in certain novel features of construction and combination and arrangement of parts, which will be hereinafter fully described and claimed, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a front view of a calf-weaner embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a rear view of the same. Fig. 3 is a central vertical section. Fig. 4 is a plan view of the sheetmetal blank from which the device is made.

The calf weaner is constructed from a blank of the form shown in Fig 4, which is cut out or stamped up from a piece of sheet metal and comprises a body portion A and a segmental foldable reinforce B, the said body portion and reinforce being formed with a slot 0, narrower at the center and increasing in width toward each end, thus providing upon opposite sides thereof comparatively narrow neck portions D D, which integrally connect the body portion and segmental reinforce together.

In forming the weaner from the blank the segmental reinforce B is folded over upon the rear side] of the body A and secured thereto by rivets or other suitable fastenings E. In thus folding the segmental reinforce the blank is bent at the points D D, which are rounded to form cylindrical bearings F, the lower ends of said bearings, being held properly closed by the arrangement of a rivet beloweach of them, as shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 3. 1 Preferably three rivets are employed, one below each bearing and one at the center of the segmental portion B immediately below the base portion of the opening 0.

When the segmental reinforce has been folded and secured, the edge walls of the enlarged portions of the opening 0 come in alinement, forming a central space or recess to receive the nose of the animal, which space or recess is contracted at its top by overhanging projections forming the inner ends of the bearings F. By this construction it will be seen that the part A forms the shield or guard of the device and that this shield or guard is reinforced at top and entirely around the central nose-opening by the segmental reinforce B, which will strengthen the shield in such manner that it cannot bend or buckle at the center when the device strikes an obstruction.

In the bearings F are mounted nose-pieces H, which are slidable in and out, so that they may be moved inwardly to bear upon opposite sides of the septum narium of the nose, and adjusted outwardly, so as to release the shield from engagement. These nose-pieces may be made of wood or any other suitable material and may be tipped with rubber or otherwise constructed to prevent injury to the septum. W'hen adjusted, the nose-pieces are secured against movement by set-screws I, projecting through openings in the bearings F and engaging the nose-pieces.

In applying the device the set-screws are first released and the nose-pieces slid outward, after which the device is adjusted to allow the nose of the calf to pass through the central opening when the nose-pieces arepressed inward, so as tobear against theseptumnarium with the desired degree of force, and the setscrews then tightened to hold the device in place.

From the foregoing description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, the construction, mode of operation, and advantages of the invention will be readily understood, it is thought, without requiring a more extended explanation. It will be seen that by constructing and arranging the parts in the manner described, with the reinforce extending entirely around the nose-opening of' the shield, the shield will be securely reinforced at the center and prevented from buckling or bending when the calf forces the weaner against an obstruction, thereby obviating any liability of the nose-pieces becoming bent out of their position or exerting a twisting strain upon the nose and causing injury to the animal.

Changes in the form, proportion, and the minor details of construction may be made without departing from the principle or sacrificing anyof the advantages of the invention.

my hand in presence of two subscribing wit- 3o nesses.

ARCHIE T. KEECH.

\Vitnesses JOHN W. LILLIE, W. II. JACOBY. 

